On Oct. 24, 2004, Tunisia held its simultaneous quinquennial presidential and legislative elections. A special constitutional amendment had been passed that allowed candidates to stand for reelection more than three times consecutively so that incumbent Pres. Gen. Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali could take part in the presidential election. As expected, he won a massive majority, capturing 94.49% of the vote, which reflected a turnout of 91.52% of Tunisia’s 4.88 million voters.

Running against President Ben Ali were Popular Union Party (PUP) leader Mohammed Bouchiha; Mohammed Ali Halouani, the leader of Ettajdid, Tunisia’s communist party; and Mohammed Mounir Beji, head of the centrist Liberal Social Party (PSL). Another candidate, lawyer Ahmed Nejib Chebbi, was disqualified when he failed to gain the endorsement of 30 members of the parliamentary assembly—undoubtedly because he had declared that the elections would not be democratic. The other three opposition candidates were prevented from handing out election material and officially withdrew from the race, but two of the three agreed in withdrawing to endorse the president.

In the legislative elections the ruling Democratic Constitutional Assembly (RCD)—effectively Tunisia’s single political party—won all 152 constituency seats outright. In the special national list—reserved to compensate opposition parties that could not confront the RCD—the Democratic Socialist Movement (MDS) gained 14 seats, followed by the PUP with 11; the Unionist Democratic Union (UDU), 7; Ettajdid, 3; and the Liberal Social Party (PSL), 2. Independents failed to gain any representation.

International disquiet about the nature of the electoral process in Tunisia reflected the wider disquiet over the state of human rights in the country. Both U.S. Pres. George W. Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell brought the matter to Ben Ali’s personal attention during his visit to the United States in February. Human rights organizations estimated that Tunisia still had about 500 political prisoners.

The Tunisian economy continued to show strong growth, with GDP expected to grow by 5.6% in 2004 and by 6% in 2006. Unemployment, however, remained high at 14%, and anxieties were expressed about the slow rate of microeconomic reform in the country, despite government promises that it would be sped up. The privatization program remained stagnant during the year but was expected to accelerate in the future. Although Tunisia had not yet negotiated a free-trade-area agreement with the U.S., Washington established its regional Middle East Partnership Initiative office for North Africa in Tunis.

On Feb. 14, 2004, the final of the African Nations Cup was held in Radès, Tun., and was won by the host country, which defeated neighbours Morocco 2–1 in front of a crowd of 60,000 in the November 7 Stadium. The top player of the tournament was adjudged to have been Jay Jay Okocha of Nigeria. That country’s Enyimba won the African Super Cup to confirm its status as the leading club...